Anna said to creative director Grace Coddington, Kim and Kanye are getting married.
Why dont you do a take on them with actors fromSaturday Night Live?
Oh my goodness, Anna said, giving Coddington a funny look, realizing that was the right idea.
That would be fantastic.
Of course, this was a huge turning point for Anna and forVogue.
Stephanie Winston Wolkoff was officiallyVogues events planner, and unofficially the general.
She planned allVogueparties, including the gala.
(Her team consisted of one assistant, whom Anna treated as her third assistant.
If she knew her name, she didnt use it, instead calling her Stephanies girl.
Planning the gala began with creating the guest list.
Then Anna went through it all, crossing off names and adding others.
It wasnt as easy as youd think, said Winston Wolkoff.
Some were designers who were just starting out but not big enough to be on the initial invite list.
Hollywood agents also started calling, trying to get their stars in.
Were happy to take your donation, a representative fromVoguewould tell them.
But we have no more tickets to sell.
There had to be a reason for you to be in that room.
Representatives for the Kardashians called, trying to get them in.
But she also understood Annas change of heart.
At the end of the day,Vogues a business, she said.
Before the shoot was officially booked,Anna and West discussed it face-to-face.
She knew she had to keep the entire thing secret.
Coddington, who almost never styled celebrities, requested custom wedding dresses from designers for Kardashian to wear.
For Kardashians dresses, Coddington provided only her measurements.
All the designers were super excited about it, said Hamish Bowles, who wrote the accompanying story.
Voguestaff knew something was up when Coddington left Paris Fashion Week early for a secretive shoot.
Mark Holgate,Vogues fashion news director, speculated that she was actually off to shoot Kate Middleton.
If anyone sawVoguestaff with Leibovitz and Kardashian, they would know where the pictures were running.
When he stepped into the office, two highly unusual things happened.
First, her assistants closed the door behind him.
Then Anna came around her desk holding a manila envelope.
It was all so strange and dramatic that for a moment Holgate thought he was about to be fired.
This is top secret.
This is going to be the cover.
I want you to write another letter.
It wasnt Coddingtons favorite set of pictures.
She liked the one of Kanye photographing Kim taking a selfie with her baby, North.
This article was originally published onMay 3, 2022
